Views

Ward and stake divisions

Ward and stake divisions are proposed by stake presidents. The stake clerk will play a major role in preparing the Ward and Branch Organization Application that is submitted by the stake president to the Area Presidency. The Area Presidency review the application and endorse it before they submit it to the Boundary and Leadership Change Committee. Approval is given only by the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve.

The application contains sections in which current statistical data about the units that would be affected by the proposal, alongside a section setting out the same statistical data if the proposal is implemented.

Considerations when dividing units

Make sure the split takes into account "active" membership and not records only. If not done properly, one of the wards could end up really small because its boundries are full of inactive members.

Consider the impact of school district boundaries, so the youth within a ward or stake share similar activity calendars.

When two wards become three, two things that may subsequently haunt the stake and ward leadership are listed below.

"Other" accounts: It is especially important that a boy's "share" of the Scout Fund (because the boy participated in fundraising) follows him into the new unit's Scout Fund.

Missionary Support Payments: If a family has a son or daughter on a mission before the split, make sure the family donates to the unit (and only that unit) that is having the mission cost deducted from its bank account. Otherwise, it can get a bit messy to iron out later.